Head out to the local course around your house or watch a round of golf and you’ll quickly notice something about the courses; they’re all par 72.
But what about other courses with shorter holes and lower pars. These junior sized courses are called “executive courses” and that’s what we’re going to talk about this time on 6 Minutes With Sully.
What is an Executive Course?
As we mentioned above, executive courses have a lower par than a full, regulation course. While this is usually due to an increase in par 3 holes during the round it is still possible to have par 4’s and 5’s on executive courses.
This scorecard is from Dixie Red Hills, an executive course in St. George, Utah.
Par for an executive course is usually between 30-34 for nine holes. Three par three’s, five par four’s, and a par five would be one semi-common layout for an executive course.
If you’re wondering where the name comes from, the term “executive course” is actually from corporate America. Executives love to play golf but busy schedules make playing a two and a half hour round out of the question.
To fix this problem, golf course architects started designing shorter, quicker courses that busy players could whip through in an hour and a half; something much more manageable for a lunch break or an evening after work.
What’s so Great About Executive Courses Anyways
While you might not be interested in running into company executives on the golf course, there are other benefits to playing an executive course.
First, as we mentioned above, it simply takes less time to play a round on an executive course.
Where you might spend five hours playing eighteen holes normally, you could cut that down to around three just by playing an executive course. This, of course, depends on the crowds, size of the course, etc.
Along with short round times, executive courses are also great for beginning golfers.
You might be hesitant to bring a new golfer on a regulation course, after all, they’re expensive, crowded, and time-consuming if you’re playing partner isn’t on top of their game.
However, with an executive course, the shorter holes and lower cost should help keep your new playing partner from getting too frustrated as they learn the game.
Finally, executive courses are a great place to practice and hone your skills.
Many of these courses can be found in cities or other densely populated areas. If this is the case, oftentimes an executive course will have a driving range or putting green attached to it.
This allows you to warm up and work on your swing at the range and then apply what you just practiced during an actual round; something that really is the best of both worlds.
Wrap-Up
I’m not going to lie if promises of cheaper, faster, more enjoyable rounds of golf wasn’t enough to sell you on trying an executive course I’m not sure what will.
They may not be as widely known as their larger relatives, but if you know where to look there are amazing short courses all around us looking for golfers to come out and play.
So next time you’re looking to squeeze in nine after work, skip the two and a half hour grind and go check out your local executive course instead. I know you won’t regret it.